US has ‘never interfered in Taiwan-China talks’

INAPPROPRIATE:A Washington seminar was told that it would be presumptuous of any country to suggest to Taiwanese leaders what issues they should negotiate on

By William Lowther / Staff reporter in WASHINGTON

He said Taiwan should be strong enough to defend itself against a blockade or an invasion for a sufficient period of time to “give pause to someone contemplating such hostility.”

This was, he said, an important aspect of giving Taiwan the confidence to negotiate from a position of strength.

Burghardt said there would be no continuing improvement in cross-strait relations unless Taiwan felt confident in its own security.

“If you want to stop cross-strait progress, the fastest way to bring it to a halt would be to remove Taiwan’s sense of security and sense of deterrent capability. Beijing is never going to accept that logic, but we believe it deeply, as does Taiwan,” Burghardt said.